Relates to housing of homeless persons in the city of New York; requires that no hotel, motel, inn, lodging, resort, tavern, boarding house, rooming house, or hostel shall be used to house the homeless unless a contract between the city or state agency that is responsible for providing housing to such homeless persons and the owner of such place where the housing will be provided is approved and signed by such parties and by the comptroller.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
6932
2017-2018 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
March 24, 2017
___________
Introduced by M. of A. BARNWELL -- read once and referred to the Commit-
tee on Social Services
AN ACT to amend the social services law, in relation to housing of home-
less persons in New York city
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Section 43 of the social services law is amended by adding
2 a new subdivision 12 to read as follows:
3 12. (a) In the city of New York, no hotel, motel, inn, lodging,
4 resort, tavern, boarding house, rooming house, or hostel, shall be used
5 in any manner, to house or rent rooms to any homeless person unless a
6 contract is signed between the city or state agency that is responsible
7 for providing shelter and/or housing or rental accommodations to the
8 homeless person, and the owner, operator, individual, limited liability
9 company (LLC), limited liability partnership (LLP), corporation, part-
10 nership, developer, and/or any other legal entity responsible for the
11 hotel, motel, inn, lodging, resort, tavern, boarding house, rooming
12 house, or hostel in which the proposed contract services will be
13 provided. The contract shall not be approved by the comptroller of the
14 city of New York unless the financial terms of the contract, including,
15 but not limited to, the fixed price for the housing and/or renting of
16 rooms for homeless persons, and/or the cost of services for the care of
17 such homeless persons, adhere to the comptroller's financial judgment.
18 At the time the contract is submitted to the comptroller, any individ-
19 ual, LLC, LLP, corporation, partnership, developer, and/or any other
20 legal entity contracting to provide services for the housing or renting
21 of rooms for homeless persons, the individual, LLC, LLP, corporation,
22 partnership, developer, and/or any other legal entity shall reveal all
23 the names and residence addresses of all members, managers, directors,
24 partners, or any other authorized person of the LLC, LLP, corporation,
25 partnership, developer, and/or any other legal entity to the comp-
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD10388-02-7
A. 6932 2
1 troller. If such information is not disclosed, the comptroller shall
2 reject the contract.
3 (b) No homeless persons shall be housed or rented a room at the
4 proposed hotel, motel, inn, lodging, resort, tavern, boarding house,
5 rooming house, or hostel contract site until the comptroller approves
6 the terms and signs the contract. Before the comptroller may sign the
7 contract, the following must occur:
8 (i) Within ten days of receiving the signed contract between the city
9 or state agency and the persons or legal entity responsible for the care
10 and/or housing of homeless persons, the comptroller shall review the
11 financial terms of the contract. If the financial terms of the contract
12 conform to the comptroller's financial judgment, the comptroller shall
13 prepare a letter of financial conformity to be sent to the community
14 board in which the property is located, affirming that the financial
15 terms of the contract conform to the comptroller's financial judgment.
16 The contract, letter of financial conformity, and the proposed location
17 site of such hotel, motel, inn, lodging, resort, tavern, boarding house,
18 rooming house, or hostel that will house and/or accommodate homeless
19 persons, shall be sent to the community board where the property is
20 located via certified mail, return receipt requested, for the community
21 board's determination of whether or not the proposed location site shall
22 be approved or rejected.
23 (ii) Within thirty days of receiving from the comptroller the letter
24 of financial conformity, and the proposed contract which states in
25 detail the proposed location site for such hotel, motel, inn, lodging,
26 resort, tavern, boarding house, rooming house, or hostel, which will
27 house or room homeless persons, the community board shall accept or
28 reject the proposed location site. The vote to accept such a proposed
29 location site shall be approved by a majority of the voting members of
30 such community board when a quorum is present. Before voting to accept
31 or reject the proposed location site, the community board shall have a
32 public hearing, in which all members of the public are invited to
33 attend, ask questions, and/or speak. The commissioner of homeless
34 services of the city of New York shall attend such community board
35 public meeting to answer questions, under legal oath, from the community
36 board, and the public. If the commissioner does not attend, the communi-
37 ty board shall not approve the proposed location site. The community
38 board shall vote only on the proposed site location and shall have no
39 decision-making power or vote over the contract provisions. If the
40 community board votes to approve such proposed location site, the site
41 shall be approved and notice shall be sent to the comptroller via certi-
42 fied mail, return receipt requested, within seven days of such approval.
43 The comptroller shall then either approve or reject the whole contract
44 according to his or her judgment. If the community board votes against
45 the proposed location site, the community board shall send notice of
46 such rejection to the comptroller within seven days of such decision via
47 certified mail, return receipt requested. If the community board rejects
48 the proposed location site the comptroller shall reject the contract. If
49 the community board fails to hold a public meeting and fails to vote on
50 the proposed site location within thirty days of receiving the proposed
51 letter of financial conformity and the proposed contract, the community
52 board shall be deemed to have waived their right to vote and hold a
53 public hearing on such proposed site, and the contract and proposed
54 location site shall be fully submitted to the comptroller for acceptance
55 or rejection by the comptroller.
A. 6932 3
1 (c) The fee for all mailings and proof of service shall be incorpo-
2 rated into the contract between the city or state agency and the owner,
3 operator, LLC, LLP, corporation, partnership, developer, and/or any
4 other legal entity responsible for the hotel, motel, inn, lodging,
5 resort, tavern, boarding house, rooming house, or hostel in which the
6 proposed contract services will be provided. The comptroller's office
7 and the community board shall be reimbursed for such mailing fees and
8 proof of service by the owner, operator, individual, LLC, LLP, corpo-
9 ration, partnership, developer, and/or any other legal entity responsi-
10 ble for the hotel, motel, inn, lodging, resort, tavern, boarding house,
11 rooming house, or hostel in which the proposed contract services will be
12 provided.
13 (d) The location of the proposed hotel, motel, inn, lodging, resort,
14 tavern, boarding house, rooming house, or hostel to house or rent rooms
15 to homeless individuals, shall not be within five hundred yards of a
16 school.
17 (e) All incidents at the hotel, motel, inn, lodging, resort, tavern,
18 boarding house, rooming house, or hostel that is housing or renting
19 rooms to homeless persons, of 911 calls, police responses, disturbances,
20 complaints, and/or incidents that are handled by the security group or
21 agency that is in charge of security of such place shall provide
22 detailed information in the following manner:
23 (i) All such incidents that take place on the property, or incidents
24 involving any person under the care or supervision of the hotel, motel,
25 inn, lodging, resort, tavern, boarding house, rooming house, or hostel,
26 or their guests, shall be reported at least once a month to the local
27 police precinct and the local community board where the property is
28 located.
29 (ii) Emergencies, including, but not limited to, any physical alterca-
30 tions or violence, or any incidents involving drugs or weapons on such
31 property or involving any person under the care or supervision of the
32 hotel, motel, inn, lodging, resort, tavern, boarding house, rooming
33 house, or hostel, or their guests shall be reported immediately to the
34 police precinct and community board where the property is located.
35 (iii) Any police response by the New York city police department shall
36 be reported to the local community board once a month, or if an emergen-
37 cy or incident occurs as described in subparagraph (ii) of this para-
38 graph, such emergency shall be reported as soon as possible by the
39 police precinct to the community board where the property is located.
40 (f) Any individual, LLC, LLP, corporation, partnership, developer,
41 hotel owner, service provider, security provider, and/or any legal enti-
42 ty and its members, managers, directors, partners, or any other author-
43 ized person of such legal entity, as well as in their individual capaci-
44 ty, that is negotiating, or is under contract for such housing and/or
45 renting of rooms, or providing security, or any other services for home-
46 less persons shall not contribute to any political campaigns, political
47 candidate, and/or ballot measure, during the tenure of the contract and
48 for four years after such contract expires, or is completed.
49 (g) For any violation of this subdivision, the community board and
50 elected officials, including, but not limited to, the city councilmem-
51 ber, state assembly member, state senator, congress member, and/or the
52 federal senators that represent the location of the proposed hotel,
53 motel, inn, lodging, resort, tavern, boarding house, rooming house, or
54 hostel, shall have standing in a court of competent jurisdiction, to
55 bring any and all actions against the city or state, city or state agen-
56 cy, an individual, LLC, LLP, corporation, partnership, developer, hotel
A. 6932 4
1 owner, service provider, security provider, any legal entity, and/or any
2 other party to the contract. If the court determines that a violation of
3 this subdivision has occurred, the court shall terminate the contract,
4 and all attorneys' fees and costs incurred by the plaintiff shall be
5 paid by the individual, LLC, LLP, corporation, partnership, developer,
6 hotel owner, service provider, security provider, legal entity, and/or
7 any other party to the contract.
8 (h) If any portion of this subdivision is adjudged invalid, such order
9 or judgment shall be confined in its operation to the controversy in
10 which it was rendered, and shall not affect or invalidate the remainder
11 of any provision of this subdivision and to this end each of the
12 provisions of this subdivision are hereby declared to be severable.
13 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately and shall apply to all
14 contracts issued, renewed, altered or amended on or after such effective
15 date.
